
Gass 

Book— 



,NA 



i 



VICTORY TURNED TO MOURNING. 

A MEMORIAL SERMON 



1 



H\ 



ON THE OCCASION OF THE ASSASSINATION OF 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 

Sixteenth President of the United States, 
APRIL 14, 1865. 



PREACHED IN ]HE 

REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH, 

B-A.-sroisrnsrE, isr. j-_, 

SABBATH, APRIL 23, 1865, 

BY THEODORE W. WELLS. 

PUBLISHED BY BEQUEST OF THE COMKEGATION. 



JERSEY CITY : 
PRINTED AT THE DAILY TIMES OFFICE. 



18 65 



VICTORY TURNED TO MOURNING 



A MEMORIAL SERMON 

ON THE OCCASION OF THE ASSASSINATION OF 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 

Sixteenth President of the United States, 
APRIL 14, 1865. 



rEE ACHED IN 1HE 

REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH, 

SABBATH, APRIL 23, 1865, 
BY THEODORE W. WELLS. 



PUBLISHED BY BEQUEST OF THE OOHGBEGATIOU. 



JERSEY CITY : 
PRTXTED AT THE DAILY TIAIES OFFICE. 



18 65 



rs 









Eas 



This discourse is published simply because those for whom it was prepared 
earnestly requested its publication. Hastily written, it was intended only 
for the ears of those before whom it was preached. My own judgment lells 
me to keep it in manuscript form. This I would do were not its publication 
asked of me as a favor by those who have ever proved themselves my sincere 
friends. The kindness they have shown me would make a denial of their 
request an act of ingratitude. Hoping, therefore, that it may be blest of God, 
and tend to the promotion of true patriotism, I offer it as a humble tribute 
of respect to the memory of our lamented President. 

T. W. W. 



SERMON. 



"And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people." 

2 Sam. xi.\:2. 

History is continually repeating itself. The past 
finds its counterpart in the present, and tlie present 
will be re-enacted in the future. The minute detail of 
circumstances attending the great events of our world's 
history, we can never expect to see again, it is true ; 
but, then, if we judge the future by the past, we may 
rest assured that scenes will be witnessed, where dif- 
ferent actors play their parts, and different voices 
speak on a different stage, which will resemble the 
events even now transpiring. 

The words I have read as my text were written 
nearly three thousand years ago. They were applica- 
ble then; for Israel, although flushed with victory — 
having triumphed over the foes of the King — in sym- 
pathy with David, wept and mourned the fall of Ab- 
salom, his darling son. The victory that day was 
turned into mourning unto all the people. Such words 
are applicable now. 

Two weeks ago joy tilled every loyal heart. Our 
banners, baptized with blood, were crowned with vic- 
tory. Through the clouds of the terrible tempest, tbat 
for four long years has deluged our land with tears 
and blood, light was breaking. By its illumination, 
the words of the angel's song at Christ's nativity could 
be seen once more spanning our sky, over a land not 
dissevered, but united. 



6 

They were read by all. Peace on earth, good will 
toward men. The words were soul-inspiring. They 
filled every heart with gladness. Their sound fell on 
the ear as music's sweetest strains at evening time. 
Old men wept for joy. Full-grown men were boys 
again. The nation's heart beat rapturously. With 
eager yet confidant expectation we all, with happy 
hearts, were listening for the last tolled knell of treach- 
ery, treason and rebellion. It was our day of victory. 
Richmond was ours. Lee had surrendered, and John- 
ston in vain was seeking for rest from Sherman march- 
ing up from the sea. We all felt glad, and were pre- 
paring to make the air of the New World ring with our 
songs of jubilee. 

But, alas ! how soon our cup of happiness was ex- 
changed for one of sorrow. Above the sounds of joy 
and gladness, louder than the cannon's roar — above 
the noisy tramp of our victorious legions, when joy 
was full — above the din of battle, the clash of arms, 
the deafening shrieks of those rushing to the charge, 
a clear, sharp, ringing sound is heard. It is the report 
of an assassin's pistol disturbing the slumber of night 
and flashing in its darkness. And ere its echoes die 
away or its light is gone, every loyal heart in all our 
vast dominions, mourns as bitterly as before it rejoiced 
exultantly. " The President is dead, shot by an assas- 
sin," is the intelligence which the lightning carries 
through the land. When morning dawns, it passes 
from tongue to tongue, falls upon the ear at every 
street corner ; and as the words are heard, consterna- 
tion and dismay seize hold upon the people. Loyal 
hearts bleed at every pore — men weep who never wept 
before, and a nation, as if suddenly checked in its on- 
wardjnarch of prosperity and greatness, awe-struck, 
stands still, with well nigh breathless soul, to lament 



and mourn her martyred President. The victory that 
day was turned into mourning unto all the people. 
Flags droop. The stars hide in the azure blue — the 
stripes refuse to flaunt in the breeze — and thus, from 
every spire and hill-top the stars and stripes, which 
were so proudly waving, over the land of the free and 
the homes of the brave, proclaiming victory and tri- 
umph, cling to their staffs, stricken down with sorrow, 
or mournfully rustle their folds at half-mast. Almost 
instantly, a Nation changes the garments of praise and 
thanksgiving, and exultant joy, for vestments of sack- 
cloth, weeds of mourning, and badges of grief. By 
these sombre emblems of mortality, seeking to give a 
human 'language and interpretation to the sorrow well- 
ing up in its heart, because a revered and trusted ruler 
is now numbered with the dead. 

The world, I know, is full of hypocrisy. Mourning 
garbs often cover a joyous heart. This may be true 
of some to-day. A few may mourn because it is fash- 
ionable ; but, thank God, we have good assurance that 
all these manifestations of sorrow are no seeming show, 
no unreal mockery of grief, but the mute expression of 
that which is felt — a true index of the people's hearts. 

The shot that stilled Abraham Lincoln's heart, struck 
the nation's heart — struck the heart of every right- 
minded man — of every loyal man — of every one whose 
soul was large enough to appreciate him, who, when 
raised from a woodman's cottage to the highest office 
a free people could bestow, at a time of trial and dis- 
aster, never, in the discharge of duty, knew or heeded 
any command other than that which duty uttered. 

True to God, and true to man, he is mourned by all, 
and to-day tve meet to give expression to our sorrow. 
Meet at the altar of our God, to hear from him the les- 
sons He would teach by this mysterious providence. 



8 

There is wisdom and great propriety in our so doing. 
These funeral solemnities should not have been omit- 
ted. A truly great man has fallen in our Israel ; the 
bereaved family is a nation ! Columbia mourns her 
darling son, assassinated by a fiend ; and our hearts, 
melted by her tears, are in a teachable condition, and 
our minds, burdened with grief, are rjrepared to hear, 
with advantage and profit, what the Lord, our God,, 
will say. 

God sends calamities upon the earth for a two-fold 
purpose^ He sends them to punish sin. He sends 
them to work out for those who are sanctified thereby 
a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 

There is a dark side and a bright side to every af- 
flictive providence. Affliction is dreadful when con- 
sidered as punishment for sin. It is relieved of its bit- 
terness when we see the good it accoinx>lishes. Believ- 
ing the temporal judgments of God to be adapted to 
the sin punished thereby, I propose to inquire what 
sins, among the many, we have committed we may 
justly consider as being especially rebuked by our 
present calamity. 

And the first voice which comes from the sanctuary 
to-day, in answer to our inquiry, if I rightly interpret, 
finds its expression in those words once spoken by the 
holy prophet, once uttered by the Lord of Hosts, and 
forever proceeding from the throne on high, "Be still, 
and know that I am God." We forget this too often. 
We need to stop and think, and, in meditation, raise 
our thoughts above the things of earth. Our minds 
need, oftentimes, to be thrown out of the beaten track 
of daily thought. If God did not startle us sometimes 
we would forget him entirely. Our hearts incline 
towards earthly things and not towards the heavenly. 
And then, too, the business of life, the whirl and bustle 



9 

of trade, the desire for material prosperity, the sen- 
suous objects surrounding us, all transpire to drive 
from our minds the existence of Him, who unseen, con- 
trols the acts of individuals, the rise and fall of nations, 
the affairs of an unbounded universe, so that it often 
can be truly said of us — God is not in all their 
thoughts. 

* Trouble drives the human heart to God. The un- 
certain nature of earthly things, when realized and felt, 
causes us to seek some sure resting place for our hopes, 
some well tried foundation on which to lean for re- 
pose. This resting place and this foundation should 
be God. But, although the events of the last four 
years have been calculated to lead our thoughts to 
one mightier than the sons of men, yet I fear the 
American people, instead of heeding the teachings of 
the day, were trusting more to the wisdom and saga- 
city of their Chief Magistrate than they were to God. 
We loved our President too well. This our way, was 
our folly and our sin. His life was such as was well 
calculated to inspire our confidence and our trust, and 
we reposed in him. I will not presume to eulogize hii 
name. His memory is sacred. Such a task must be 
reserved for greater minds and bolder pens than I pos- 
sess. Allow me, however, in the illustration of my 
theme, to mention a few facts which already you know, 
and which will show you how he won the peoples 
hearts. 

He was raised to pow^r at a time of public disaster 
and national peril. Unknown and untried he was en- 
trusted with the destinies of the American people. 
Without army, without navy, with an exhausted trea- 
sury, he was asked to quell a rebellion the most power- 
ful and terrible the world ever saAv. A rebellion never 
excelled in the annals of history, in wickedness, treach- 



10 

ery, and diabolical deeds, save when Satan created 
discord in Heaven and raised his impious hands against 
the throne of God. None but the inhabitants of hell 
can surpass the cruel acts of the Slave Oligarchy. The 
barbarous hordes of cannibals that roam in far western 
lands would blush if charged with such outrageous 
deeds. Confederate officers have gloried in them. 
This Slave Oligarchy was the hydra-headed monster 
against which Mr. Lincoln swore to protect and defend 
the United States. It was a Herculean task. Hercu- 
lean, the twelve labors of Hercules when with it com- 
pared sink into insignificance. It was the greatest 
task ever undertaken by man, and Mr. Lincoln did it. 
Ik' fulfilled his vows. He was true to his trust, and 
the loyal North was ready to speak to him those words 
of cheer : " Well done good and faithful servant." 
During all the years of his administration, although 
tried as men are seldom tried, he was never found 
wanting. It is true, his intellectual attainments have 
been surpassed, but never did man possess such a va- 
riety of remarkable gifts as he. These made him an 
extraordinary man. With wit sufficient to cast a hu- 
murous gleam of light through the darkest cloud, with 
intuitive preception keen enough to disentangle the 
most difficult political questions, with a firmness of 
purpose which never relaxed, and above all, with un- 
wavering and implicit trust in God he seemed to pos- 
sess every quality which the crisis could possibly need 
or the people demand, and no quality which the peo- 
ple could not understand and appreciate. All of us, 
aside from party prejudices, felt that lie was the man 
for the place. 

Surnamed Honest Abe, he had proved his integrity 
by every executive act. Genial and amiable he had 
{•hanged enemies to friends. Unwavering and true he 



11 

had won the respect, the confidence, the love of the 
nation's heart, and thus inspired bright hopes for the 
coming* four years. 

His well laid plans were maturing with success. His 
policy was proving his wisdom and far-seeing sagacity, 
gaining for him approbation and praise even from 
those who were thought his political opponents. His 
kindness was daily melting* Southern hearts, while 
every transaction in which he was engaged revealed 
the qualities of mind and heart which constitute the 
safe counsellor, the sure guide, the faithful friend, the 
people's pride, the loving, kind and gentle magistrate. 

Many a heart feared no evil that could befall the 
Old Ship of State while he was at the helm. The 
storm might howl, the tempest beat, the billows roll, 
but still we slept secure, believing that he whom we 
had placed at the wheel would guide us in safety past 
breakers and shoals to the harbor of peace and quiet 
prosperity. 

Yes, he won the peoples hearts because he loved the 
people, and was ever ready to make any sacrifice, to 
do anything which would benefit the people. He seem- 
ed Distinctly to understand their wishes. His heart 
was large, and it was full of love — love for God and 
love for his country. A purer patriot never lived ; a 
kinder hearted man never ruled. In fact it has been 
said by those who knew him well, that Abraham 
Lincoln never did a cruel thing in all his life. 

I do not claim for him a faultless character. I do 
not think that his administration was blameless. He 
was but a man. He had his faults. His administra- 
tion had its mistakes. I do say, however, that I be- 
lieve he constantly did that which he thought to be 
right and never willingly went astray, that his admin- 
istration was as pure, as free from blame as was that of 



12 

Washington. So it will he viewed by the future his- 
torian, and the names of Washington and Lincoln 
firmly linked together, will he lisped by infant tongues 
as long as time endures. George Washington, the 
father, and Abraham Lincoln, the savior of our 
country. 

To some Mr. Lincoln seemed to possess a charmed 
life. The conspirators pledged to accomplish his deat li 
before he was inducted into office were foiled. The 
sickness which made many tremble was checked. The 
sojourn at an enemy's capital, where prudent men 
thought destruction surely lurked, was ended in safety, 
and thus he ever seemed to pass through danger un- 
harmed and secure. All these circumstances were fast 
tending to make him not only the people's pride, but 
the people's idol. More than four millions of human 
beings already uttered his name with reverential awe. 
They looked upon liim as their deliverer, their emanci- 
pator. For it was his words that loosened their chains 
and enabled them to breath the free air of heaven as 
American freemen, endowed with the inalienable rights 
of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

Thus all the people were looking to him as the one 
to save them from national calamity and ruin. The 
man of the hour was exalted in our hearts to the loss 
of that sense of dependence on God, which should ever 
he supreme. We were hero worshippers, forgetting 
him whose thoughts are not as our thoughts, and 
whose ways are past finding out. 

" I the Lord thy God, am a jealous God, and thou 
shalt have no other Gods before me," were the utter- 
ances of Sinai heard mid fire, and cloud, and thunder 
peal four thousand years ago. We had forgotten them. 
To-day they are repeated, are written in letters of 
blood, are stamped on our hearts with the indellible 



13 

impressiveness of sorrow and grief, and thus our day 
of victory has been turned into mourning unto all the 
people. 

Well will it be for us if the season spent in mourn- 
ing- and sorrow causes us to look above our earthly 
rulers to him who rules and reigns on high, crowned 
King of kings and Lord of lords. His hand has sent 
our affliction. His voice speaks through the present 
judgment, loudly saying: " Be still and know that I 
am God." 

The second voice which conies from the sanctuary 
to-day in further answer of our inquiry, if I rightly in- 
terpret, finds expression in the faithful apostle's words : 
" The powers that be are ordained of God." 

God is a sovereign. By Him kings rule and princes 
decree judgment. He turneth the hearts of kings as 
the rivers of waters are turned. He raiseth up one 
and casteth down another. He creates and He de- 
stroys. He rules over all the earth. They who rule 
over nations, empires, or states, are His subordinates, 
receiving from Him their power, are his instruments, to 
work out the hidden purposes of eternity, " For the 
powers that be are ordained of God, whosoever there- 
fore resiseth the power, resiseth the ordinance of God, 
and they that resist shall receive to themselves damna- 
tion." Such are the teachings of the word of God. 
Such are the lessons which from time to time during 
our unhappy strife the pulpit, ever loyal, and true has 
endeavored to teach, impress and inculcate. Only a 
portion of the people, however, have heeded these ex- 
positions of truth. The ministry have been cryed 
down. Hands have been raised in holy horror because 
those who were pledged faithfully to declare the whole 
counsel of God, conscientiously discharging their trust 
exhorted " every soul to be subject to the higher 



11 

powers." The Apostle's reasoning - exhorting obediei km s 
to the constituted authority because that authority 
was derived from God, and instituted by God, was 
mockingly pronounced farfetched, illogical and absurd, 
and for this disrespect of Gad's word our day of vic- 
tory has been " turned into mourning into all the 
people." God now vindicates his word and estabishes 
its truth in a manner that all must hear, with an au- 
thority which the most daring and stout-hearted fear 
to defy. God speaks now by events. His words are 
men. His teachings ever the same, " the powers that 
be are ordained of God." And I doubt if you could 
find the man who would have the hardihood to im- 
pugn His right to speak concerning political changes, 
or dare style Him a political preacher. Look at the 
sad record. The people choose as their ruler for the 
next four years Abraham Lincoln. Never entered 
officer upon the discharge of his duties more in ac- 
cordance with the wishes of the people. His majo- 
rity was immense, counted by loyal States, almost 
unanimous. His second inauguration day was herald- 
ed with boom of cannon and beat of drum. It seemed 
a national jubilee. Long processions filled our streets. 
And he the people's choice once again swore to protect 
and defend the constitution and the laws. Partizans 
rejoiced at what was styled a republican victory. 
Many, very many, with self complacent pride, congra- 
tulated each other that their influence and thei/r words 
and their labor had given a ruler to the land, while 
few and only a few raised their voice in thanksgiving 
to God. 

A few weeks only have passed since this memorable 
inauguration day. And where now, let me ask, with 
reverence for the dead, where now is he whom the 
people chose as their ruler and guide ? Alas, he is no 



15 

more. I say it with a sorrowing heart, for I loved him 
well. But alas, alas, it is too true. He sleeps upon 
his coffin bed that sleep which knows no waking. At 
first it seemed impossible. We could not realize the 
fact. We could not give him up. He seemed to us 
the only man who could precisely meet the nation's 
need. But he has gone. Another rules. One whom 
I believe the people last mil would not have chosen, 
one whom recently the people urged to resign for fear 
the President when sick might die. We did not know 
the man. God did. God chose him as our President, 
chose him in a manner which while it declares " man 
proposes but God disposes," must also force upon 
every mind the truth of the apostle's words, " the 
powers that be are osdained of God." For he must be 
blind who believing the Bible cannot see that it was 
God's hand that placed Andrew Johnson in the presi- 
dential chair. 

I believe there is work for the President of the 
United States to perform, which our lamented Presi- 
dent, for some cause or other, could not perform. God 
saw that other hands than Mr. Lincoln's, and another's 
mind and heart, were needed to complete the task 
which he successfully began. So it was with Israel of 
old. Joshua was called to finish the task which Moses 
began. So it has ever been. One sows and anothe r 
reaps. So is it now. Mr. Johnson was needed to carry 
on the work which Mr. Lincoln had carried almost to 
completion, God knew it — we did not. 

Give, then, to President Johnson the allegiance 
which is his due. Remember, that as long as he 
is President he is a ruler ordained of God. His 
name is sacred; his person is sacred; his reputation 
is sacred. Remember, that it is the duty of every 
citizen to strengthen and support him, to aid him by 



their obedience, to bless hiin with their prayers* 
Let 110 one dare malign his name, insult his authority, 
mar his reputation or resist his power, for those who 
do "shall receive to themselves damnation," "for the 
powers that be are ordained of God." This is God's 
truth ; its fulfillment you are witnessing every day ; 
and it was because we heeded it not that our day of 
victory " was turned into mourning unto all the people." 
To some it may seem strange that I should mention 
two sins, so contrary one to the other, as the apparent 
cause of our calamity to-day. But you must remember 
that our community has been composed of two great 
political parties ; that while one class reposed in the 
Chief Magistrate too much, almost to the exclusion of 
a still higher power, and were thus guilty of a grievous 
sin — another class ever heaped upon him the venom 
of their hatred and vile abuse, oftentimes encouraging 
those who resisted his authority and were rebelling 
against the laws he had sworn to defend. These also 
were guilty of a grievous sin. These are the two be- 
setting sins of a republican" government. We were 
guilty of them. We needed to be taught that while 
our rulers are ordained of God they are not gods, and 
that while they are not gods, their names are never- 
theless sacred, and their authority must be revered. 
We must "fear God and honor the King." Well will 
it be for us if the turning of our victory into mourning 
unto all the people causes us, in the future, to remem- 
ber our entire dependence on God, and to revere the 
constituted authorities of the land, for thus we will be 
enabled to fulfil both tables of the divine law — the 
first enjoining obedience to God, the second obedience 
to man ; and thus, too, we will secure the " favor of 
God, which is life, and his loving kindness, which is 
better than life." 



17 

Such are some of the sins which it seems to me this 
providence especially rebukes. Let us see if there is 
not a brighter, yea, even an encouraging view. I think 
there is, for, if I rightly interpret, the third voice which 
comes from the sanctuary to-day finds expression in 
the words of that disciple whom Jesus loved, even 
those sweet words of his, " God is Love." 

Love is the crowning attribute of deity, and our re- 
ligion teaches us that all God's providences are or- 
dered in infinite mercy ; that all things work together 
for good to those who put their trust in him ; that the 
judgments of the Lord are true and righteous alto- 
gether. 

What good results will flow from the sad events of 
the last few days I cannot with certainty tell. Pro- 
phecy is not a gift of mine, but I believe 

" God's purposes will ripen fast, 
Unfolding every hour ; 
The bud may have a bitter taste, 
But sweet will be the flower." 

I am sure no cloud ever obscured the sky but that 
the sun could tinge it with golden light ; that night 
never drew her mantle over the earth when the stars 
did not shine above the clouds ; that morning ever 
follows the night, and chases the darkness all away. 
God is mightier than the sun, more immutable than 
the laws of nature, and, therefore, I believe that the 
mysterious providence which causes our sorrow and 
our grief to-day, dark and gloomy as it has made our 
hearts, 

Is big with mercy, and will break 
With blessings o'er our heads ; 

will prove to us the path which leads to national good 
and prosperity. Life from death and joy from sorrow 
is the past history of God's dealing with man. Why 
should it not now be the same ? 
3 



18 

I think I can already see good springing- out of this 
terrible evil. It plainly shows us the legitimate fruits 
of treason and rebellion — the debasing and degrading 
effect of southern slavery. Slavery prompted the re- 
bellion, and the rebellion prompted the assassination. 
There may have been no formal conspiracy between 
the rebel leaders and the murderous wretch, but yet 
his crime was the result of their defiance of the laws 
and the constituted authorities of the land.* 

None but one born on southern soil, where men sell 
men and make merchandise of woman's virtue — none 
but one who drank in with his mother's milk the soul- 
destroying heresy that it was right to stultify and de- 
stroy the moral instincts of a race for whom Christ 
died ; and who learned with his A, B, C, that a petty 
state was greater than the Union — none but such an 
one could ever sink so low, or reach such hellish de- 
gradation, while surrounded with the humanizing in- 
fluences of our popular government, our free institu- 
tions and our open churches, as to meditate calmly, 
deliberately, for weeks, aye, months, the execution of 
a deed so cowardly, murderous and damnable as that 
which causes our grief to-day. I do not believe that 
even now, great as is the spirit of revenge — loudly as 
our sinful hearts call for retaliation and retribution in 
kind — there could be found, northern born and north- 
ern bred, in all the world, a wretch so cowardly, so 
wicked, so mean and contemptible, that he would steal 
with silent tread, armed to the teeth, behind the back 
of Jefferson Davis — detestable traitor that he is— and 
shoot him dead. No, never, never ! It needs slavery 
to mould and form the fiends required in such trans- 



* Facts proving a conspiracy of the most atrocious character between Booth 
and his associates with the bogus authorities at Richmond, have recently 
been made public, 



1<> 

actions. The sufferings of our soldiers, starved in 
southern prisons — the indignities heaped upon our 
fallen brave — the murder of men, women and children 

for clinging to the dear old flag of their fathers the 

chasing of Union men with bullets and blood-hounds 

the massacre at Fort Pillow — all these cruelties and 
barbarous outrages failed to impress our minds with 
the horrible and loathsome character of that spirit 
which controls the hearts of our southern foes. That 
spirit is the Demon of Slavery. Speaking at first 
through State rights and insurrection, it is now re- 
vealed in all its ghastly proportions, and speaks 
through assassination. And I think no one, as they 
gaze on the morrow upon the lifeless form of him 
whose words dealt its death blow, and who, in its 
dying agonies, it killed, will dare say that they believe 
slavery a divine institution. God has taught us dif- 
ferently now— taught us in such a manner that I fear 
our depraved hearts, prompting revenge, will urge the 
execution of cruel deeds in return for those we have 
suffered. Preacher of the Gospel though I be, I must 
acknowledge, my friends, that of all the many conflicts 
with my sinful heart through which I have passed, 
none have been as great or severe as have the strug- 
gles within the last few days to keep down the feelinos 
of malice and vengeance, enmity and cruel revenov 
which the assassination of our President has awakened 
and aroused. The pulpit no longer need urge men by 
legal ways to abolish slavery. That day has passed 
forever. In the future the ministry will need repeat- 
edly to restrain the people from undue violence, lest, 
in their hatred of that "peculiar institution," which 
has caused so much trouble, and sorrow, and o T i e f 
they seek to drive it forever from the land, in ways 
more wicked than wise. Vengeance belongeth unto 
God — He will repay. 



20 

I trust, my friends, that as this instruction has been 
dearly bought it will not soon be forgotten ; that, as 
we know the terrible nature of the evil in our land, we 
will calmly, but with determination, labor for its ex- 
pulsion. Let us, then, with one heart and one voice, 
send our prayers to the throne on high that our land 
may, forever henceforth, be free of slavery and rebel- 
lion, secession and treason. 

Lastly — By this providence God is teaching us and 
all mankind the stability of our free institutions, and 
the important truth that mankind can govern them- 
selves. Democratic government, you know, has been 
styled by the crowned heads of Europe a rash experi- 
ment. It is an experiment no longer. The last few 
days have shown a free republic to be the most stable 
and enduring government known beneath the sun. 
Strong as the everlasting hills, it is as undisturbed 
by the change of administration, in the most disastrous 
way, at the most disastrous time, as are New England's 
granite rocks unharmed by the falling of the winter's 
snow or the pattering of the summer's rain. The em- 
pires and monarchies of the old world, at a time of 
such political disaster, could never have endured a 
si lock so great. The king's blood would be but the 
fust drops of a torrent that would desolate the nation. 
The death of Louis Napoleon, even now, would inaug- 
urate a second Eeign of Terror. Great Britain, proud 
as she is, immovable as she thinks her throne, would 
totter to her fall if, at a time of intestine trouble such 
as ours, her much loved queen should die. But what 
is the spectacle that we present to-day? Is our po- 
litical fabric torn ? Is our government weakened? No, 
my friends. Apart from the grief and sorrow it has 
occasioned, the death of our Chief Magistrate has not 
caused a ripple upon the surface of our national sea. 



21 

In less than nine hours after his death our government 
was complete again— stable as ever; aye, stronger, 
more immovable, more indistructible than ever before. 
The blood which he shed, while it separated soul from 
body, united hearts long severed on account of politi- 
cal prejudices — united hands that party strife ha'd 
rent asunder — united all the north as one man, with 
one purpose, one desire, one aim, and that, to crush, 
destroy, annihilate every germ and seed, root, branch 
and twig of treason and rebellion. To-day we present 
a bolder front, a closer phalanx, a stronger battle line 
aaainst our nation's foes — both north and south — 
than he, whose loss we mourn, was ever permitted to 
see. 

Men die, but the Eepublic lives — lives in all its 
grandeur and greatness — lives inspired with robust 
strength and youthful vigor. " Its progress is ever 
onward and upward, casting flowers as it passes, upon 
the grave of each new martyr, but never halting in 
the march of its divine but irresistible mission." The 
cause of Freedom is in the .ascendant; and Liberty's 
song, as it stirs in the breeze, rises louder and clearer, 
sweeter and purer from the new made tomb of Colum- 
bia's martyr. Henceforth his name will be the rally- 
ing cry of those who fight for liberty and truth. The 
sons of America yet unborn, as they stand near his 
grave, will raise their hands to heaven, and swear for- 
ever to maintain the cause for which he worked and 
died. During all the years of the past, our armies 
have fought and our navy has battled, inspired by the 
memory of our country's Father, the great, the good, 
the immortal Washington. Henceforth another's mem- 
ory will be linked with his ; and in years to come, as 
liberty's standard, the red white and blue, is borne 
against the freeman's foe, Columbia's sons will rally 



22 

there, and, ever brave, will fight the braver, as they 
remember our country's friend and our country's mar- 
tvr, the pure, the noble, the kind-hearted and good, 
the never-to-be-forgotten Abraham Lincoln. Blood 
that thus cements a nation is not spilt in vain. A 
providence, with such results, has much to give the 
cloud a silver lining, much that tells us God is Love. 

To the will of our God, therefore, let us bow with 
trusting and submissive hearts, rejoicing that, while 
earthly rulers die, our God can never die ; rejoicing 
that our God ever lives and reigns, our refuge and our 
strength. Let us put our confidence in Him, and ever 
sing, 

" He doeth all things well." 

He whose memory we cherish, and whose loss we 
mourn to-day, made this God his refuge and defence. 
The testimony of Dr. Gurley, his pastor and spiritual 
adviser, is of the most cheering character. From him 
we learn that he prayed much in secret, sought con- 
tinually guidance from on high, and ever manifested 
a firm and unwavering faith, an implicit trust in God. 
This was the secret of his success. And although he 
was called, without a moment's warning, from a place 
where all was false, "mere seeming show," where tin- 
sel dazzled in the glare of artificial light, and creatures 
pleased the eye by acting parts which were not their 
own, to a world where all is real, and every one must 
stand or fall by their own character, yet he departed 
with a prepared spirit and a Christian's humble hope. 
Jesus was his friend in life, and in death he found 
Him true. As he entered the world unknown, a voice 
was heard sweetly saying, "Blessed are the dead that 
die in the Lord, from henceforth ; yea, saith the Spirit, 
that they may rest from their labors, and their works 
do follow them." 



23 

Let us, then, imitate liis example, and putting- our 
trust in the God he served, resolve, as we lament his 
death, that we will emulate his virtues, follow his foot- 
steps, conform to his patriotism, and strive to bequeath 
to our children and the world a name as fair and a 
character as spotless as is his. The remembrance of 
his virtues and the glory of his deeds are all that is 
left us now. It is all that we can leave the world. 
Our sphere of influence may be far humbler than was 
his, but if we act as well our part as he did his, our 
honor, although unsung-, will be the same, for it is ever 
true, "Act well your part, there all the honor lies." 
Our memory may be cherished only by a few, but if 
it testify of trust in God and faith in Jesus, our fu- 
ture glory will be as great as his, for we will wear the 
crown that fadeth not away. Live, then, for eternity 
and not for time ; seek immortal honors rather than 
the perishing; a Christian's name rather than the a\)- 
plause of your countrymen; and above all, Christ's 
spotless robe of righteousness rather than the robes of 
state. 

" For it is not all of life to live, 
Nor all of death to die." 

There is a life beyond the grave, and if we conquer at 
the tomb, the victory of that day will never be turned 
into mourning. 



SL 






LB S '12 



